Last Kiss
by Paige Elise Hale
Summary: Rule #1 of life: Never fall in love with gun runner.


Last Kiss

 **I do not own Lord of War in any way.**

* * *

Vitaly lay facing the woman of his dreams.

The clock on the bedside table read 1:58.

He couldn't sleep because by the morning he'd be gone. By tomorrow, he would be in Africa. He brought his hand up to her cheek and stroked it with his thumb. "I love you", he whispered to her.

In the morning, Sarah would wake up to an empty bed and by the afternoon, her world would come crashing down.

* * *

They met at Yuri and Ava's wedding.

Vitaly had burst into the reception, clearly already drunk off his ass.

"Vitaly, there's someone I want you to meet", Ava said. She led him over to a small blonde who was staring at one of the paintings on the wall. "Sarah", Ava said.

Sarah turned to face them and time stopped.

" _Svyatyy ebut_ (Holy fuck)", Vitaly breathed.

"This is Yuri's brother, Vitaly", Ava introduced, "Vitaly, this is Sarah".

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Vitaly", Sarah said.

Vitaly couldn't stop the stupid grin that was making its way onto his face.

Ava left them alone to get to know each other.

"Would you like to dance?" he asked her.

Sarah smiled and followed Vitaly to the dance floor.

* * *

The next time Sarah and Vitaly met, it was on Christmas.

He burst through the door exclaiming, "Merry fucking Christmas!" He proceeded to trip and fall into the pile of presents and the tree, causing Nicky to start crying.

Ava picked up her son and left the room.

Sarah knelt next to Vitaly and helped him up. She helped him over to the couch as she inspected for any injuries.

He was clearly high on something.

"You need a shower, Vitaly", she told him. She helped him up from the couch and started to help him down the hallway, when he stopped her.

"Wait", he said.

"What is it?" she asked him.

He looked up and she followed his eyesight.

She blushed when she saw the mistletoe. "Vitaly, you don't have…" She was cut off by Vitaly's lips on hers. She kissed him back as his hands gently cradled the back of her head.

That was the moment she fell in love with Vitaly.

* * *

"I don't understand why you have to go", Sarah told Vitaly.

"I have to. He's my brother", Vitaly told her as he packed his carry on.

"You told me you were done with this", she said.

Vitaly sighed, "I know. But babe, we need the money. This could buy us that restaurant we've talked about".

"There's nothing I can say to stop you, is there?" she asked him.

"This is the last one. I promise", he said kissing her.

Sarah had a terrible feeling about this, but she pushed those thoughts aside as Vitaly pushed her back onto the bed.

* * *

Vitaly had never called her. He always called her when he landed. Finally, in the afternoon, the phone rang.

She rushed to pick it up. "Vitaly?" she asked.

"Sarah…" Yuri's voice said, "Vit…"

Sarah's heart dropped. She dropped to her knees and let out an agonizing wail. She kept crying Vitaly's name and asking why.

Yuri heard everything. "I'll be back with Vitaly's body in a couple of days", Yuri told her and hung up.

The day Yuri returned to the states was the day Sarah found out she was pregnant with Vitaly's baby.

Her first instinct upon hearing about Vitaly's death was to blow her brains out with own Vitaly's gun to be with him again, but she was suddenly glad she hadn't.

* * *

The funeral was small and almost no one came.

She got dirty looks from the fellow gathers, being unwed and pregnant, but she held her head high.

Yuri stood by her side with an arm wrapped around her waist.

She might as well be an Orlov. Her baby would be an Orlov. She had cursed and blamed Yuri for Vitaly's death.

But then he had explained what Vitaly had died for and she couldn't be angry with him anymore, as much as she wanted to.

When it came time to say final goodbyes, Sarah approached the casket.

In front of everyone, she opened the casket, smoothed some hair back from Vitaly's face and kissed him one last time. "I'm pregnant, Vit", she told him, "I'm pregnant". She'd never gotten the chance to tell him in life, but at least now, wherever his spirit was, would hear her.

Yuri placed his hands on her arms and gently pulled her away.

"I love you, Vitaly. I always will", she said.

* * *

Sarah ended up giving birth to a baby boy named Aleksander, meaning 'Defender of Man'. She wanted to honor Vitaly's last deed.

He had died trying to save people's lives and that deed deserved to be celebrated.

Aleksander had the blue eyes and brown hair of his father.

Sarah vowed that her son would grow up knowing what his father had done.

How his father had died trying to do the right thing when his brother wouldn't.


End file.
